1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to flavedo powder enhancement of citrus juice. The flavedo powder originates from a natural source and provides a non-artificial means to enhance or the nutritional or color aspects of, or provides a natural vehicle for flavoring additions to, citrus juice products. When the invention is utilized for color enhancement of not-from-concentrate orange juice, such is achieved without any substantial negative impact on flavor or other important attributes of the juice. Color enhancement of not-from-concentrate orange juice is especially advantageous for juice which is put up early in the harvest season or during times which high color orange supplies are not available to the extent needed for the commercial not-from-concentrate orange juice industry. At times herein, the color enhancing aspects are specifically referred to. It will be understood that same can apply as well to other attributes of the flavedo powder when blended into citrus juices.
2. Description of Related Art
It is generally recognized that the color of orange juice is a quality which has value to the consumer. This value has been acknowledged in connection with governmental grading of orange juice. As an example, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has designated different grades of pasteurized orange juice, which can be measured by comparing orange juice color with multiple polymeric standard color tubes. By this comparison approach, one can discern orange juice color in accordance with a USDA color grade. This somewhat subjective measurement approach allows one to determine if a juice can be designated as Grade A pasteurized orange juice by exhibiting a USDA color grade of 36-40, or as a Grade B pasteurized orange juice by exhibiting a USDA color grade of 32-35.
More objective color measurement approaches also are available and practiced. A colorimeter can be used to ascertain three primary parameters of an orange juice sample. These parameters, typically X(amber), Y(green) and Z(blue), then are used to calculate a Color Number which is readily convertible into a USDA color score. For example, an orange juice sample having a Color Number of between 35.0 and 36.4 is equivalent to a USDA color score of 36, thereby indicating a Grade A orange juice.
Orange juice coloration is closely related to coloration of the originating oranges, more particularly, coloration of the orange solids and liquids which combine to provide the juice product when expressed from the whole fruit. In an overall sense, whole orange fruit constitutes the orange juice originating components within a peel portion.
Orange peel is generally constituted of albedo and flavedo. Albedo is the generally white, spongy portion of the peel which contains substances such as flavonoids, limonin, and pectin. Flavedo is the colored portion of the orange peel which contains carotenoids; these contribute a large percentage of the characteristic orange color of the fruit and peel oil, the latter contributing to aroma notes of the fruit. Limonene is the major component of peel oil. It will be appreciated that the flavedo, which is an especially strong color contributor to the outward appearance of the whole fruit, need not correlate directly to the juice color, inasmuch as flavedo traditionally is not an intentional component of orange juice itself, being on the outside of the whole fruit and usually not intentionally harvested into the extracted juice.
While flavedo color is not necessarily closely indicative of internal juice color, the orange cultivar type and the growing season stage for that particular cultivar type does strongly control juice color. Generally, as seasonal maturation increases, color increases. Orange juice color also is affected by growing region and weather and climate conditions or changes. For example, juice from orange fruit grown in dry and cool conditions generally has higher color values from that from fruit grown in more humid and hot conditions. Regarding orange cultivar types, in Florida for example, orange juice from the traditionally most often used earlier season varieties such as Hamlin oranges have color values which often do not meet USDA Grade A standards. Furthermore, the earlier in the season for Hamlin oranges, the generally lower the color value. A typical Florida growing season for these early season Hamlin oranges begins in late October to early November, running until approximately January, at which time harvesting of the preferred and more color-intense Valencia oranges begins in a typical growing cycle.
This means that, during the current commercial Florida orange early harvest season, from about late October to January, juice containing only these early season varieties or cultivars often do not meet USDA Grade A standards. Color Numbers of these juices usually are within the Grade B range of 32 to 35. Often, the early season juices are in the middle to lower portion of that range.
In certain instances, it is important to avoid adding components which do not originate from the citrus stream. Examples are juices which are within the not-from-concentrate category. Adding artificial agents or adding components not originating from the citrus juice stream (or other explicitly approved source) is strictly prohibited and contrary to the standards which are instrumental in maintaining the attractive attributes of this category of juice products. With specific reference to orange juice coloration, currently the sole non-orange stream source which is governmentally and industry approved is blending the lower color early season not-from-concentrate juice with up to 10% tangerine juice (which typically has high color) to obtain a Grade A score. Otherwise, held-over higher color juice (such as that from previous-season Florida Valencia oranges) can be blended in during early season so as to have that earlier season not-from-concentrate orange juice fall into the Grade A range.
It will be appreciated that benefits would be realized if it were possible to positively impact citrus juice products in a straightforward manner, such as enhancing color attributes of not-from-concentrate orange juice without having to resort to the above-noted two color enhancement approaches which are the only ones currently available to the commercial producer. Incorporation of tangerine juice raises a flavor issue. Incorporation of held-over, higher color orange juices is limited by availability during the early season; this approach also brings with it increased costs including capital outlays for hold-over systems.
One approach along the lines of color enhancement might be to extract carotenoids from flavedo, assuming this would be an approved alternative for the selected juice product, such as a not-from-concentrate product. In this regard, literature does describe methods for extracting carotenoids from flavedo. Intuitively, such an approach would entail costs not currently borne by this industry. Patents propose processes for the production of orange-peel derived components, without teaching how to effectively use same in juices or how to address stability or flavor impact issues. In Willison U.S. Pat. No. 1,848,760, citrus peel is chopped and washed for use as a coloring agent. In Epperson U.S. Pat. No. 4,608,266, a citrus extender is produced for citrus juices. Flavedo is extracted from citrus peel and passed with water through a homogenizer. By this process, the peel is placed into colloidal suspension with water, an acidifier, and a chelating agent to produce the extender.
With respect to the color enhancing aspect of the invention, heretofore no approach has been presented which can be practiced to add only color and no other modifiers to citrus juice, especially of the not-from-concentrate type. There accordingly is a need for an approach which can be used to naturally and positively impact citrus juices, such as to enhance color, especially during the times of the year when high color fruit is not readily or naturally available, without otherwise detracting from the other important attributes of the juice, including sensory attributes such as taste. Further advantages can result for an approach which also enhances the nutritional aspects and/or the sensory aspects of the juice products.
In accordance with the present invention, enhancement of orange juice is accomplished without the use of synthetic agents and with the use of natural flavedo. The flavedo is advantageously treated and added to citrus juice such as orange juice, especially of the not-from-concentrate variety, without significantly negatively impacting taste or other attributes of these types of products. The flavedo is shaved, washed and dried, while providing a powdered component which readily combines with the citrus juice and significantly enhances its color and nutritional aspects and, when desired, provides a vehicle for flavor addition.
Another object of the present invention is to provide an enhanced not-from-concentrate orange juice which retains all of the advantageous attributes of the orange juice and which continues to incorporate only natural, citrus originating components.
Another object of this invention is to provide an improved method and juice product which allows for deep orange colored orange juice throughout the calendar year, whether it be after or before the growing season for the more deeply colored orange fruit varieties.
Another object of the present invention is to provide an improved method and juice product which avoids disadvantages to the use of extracted orange peel pigments in orange juice, which tend to have associated flavedo components that negatively affect the flavor of the orange juice and to not stay evenly distributed in the orange juice due to their hydrophobic nature.
Another object of this invention is to provide an improved juice product and method which allow for nutritional enhancement by the incorporation of additional important flavedo components within the juice.
Another object of the present invention is to provide an improved method and product by which flavoring components are added to citrus juices through the mechanism of incorporation with and/or within natural flavedo material.
Another object of the invention is to provide an improved method and product which improves the sensory character of citrus juice products.
Other objects and advantages of the present invention will be understood from the following description according to preferred embodiments of the present invention, relevant information concerning which is shown in the accompanying drawings.